As used in this application, the term "Fluidotherapy unit" means apparatus for applying massage and heat or cold to the arms, legs and other parts of the body, whether human or animals, using a fluidized solids bed as the heat transfer medium. The apparatus is arranged to position the member being treated in intimate heat conducting relation with a mass of finely divided solid particles by immersing the member in the mass. Meanwhile, the mass is rendered turbulent by forcing a gas, e.g. air, therethrough whereby the member is subjected to massaging action. The massaging action may or may not be accompanied by heat or cold imparted to the mass, e.g. by utilizing electrical heating elements or a refrigerant to heat or cool the body member, as the case may be.
Prior art patents disclose an early form of apparatus for providing massage by subjecting a body member to the massaging action ebullient, heated bed of particles.